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Big Chiwaukum is a prominent mountain summit located in Chelan County of Washington state. Big Chiwaukum is situated northeast of Frosty Pass, and within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Big Chiwaukum is the highest peak in the Chiwaukum Mountains, a subset of the
Big Chiwaukum is composed of schist, part of the Nason terrane laid down 210 million years ago. During the Pleistocene period dating back over two million years ago, glaciation advancing and retreating repeatedly scoured the landscape leaving deposits of rock debris. The last glacial retreat in the Alpine Lakes area began about 14,000 years ago and was north of the Canada–US border by 10,000 years ago. The "U"-shaped cross section of the river valleys are a result of that recent glaciation.
Alpine Lakes Wilderness (Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest)
U.S. Forest Service Mountains of Washington (state) Mountains of Chelan County, Washington Cascade Range North American 2000 m summits
Cascade Range
The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...
. In the Wenatchee dialect, ''Chiwaukum'' means ''many little creeks running into one big one.'' Its nearest higher peak is Cashmere Mountain
Cashmere Mountain is an mountain summit located in Chelan County, Washington, Chelan County of Washington (U.S. state), Washington state. Cashmere Mountain is situated within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, on land managed by the Okanogan–Wenatc ...
, to the south-southeast. Precipitation runoff
Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to:
* RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program
* Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed
* Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...
from Big Chiwaukum drains into tributaries of the Wenatchee River.
Climate
Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, and travel east toward the Cascade Mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks of the Cascade Range, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the Cascades ( Orographic lift). As a result, the Cascades experience high precipitation, especially during the winter months in the form of snowfall. During winter months, weather is usually cloudy, but, due to high pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean that intensify during summer months, there is often little or no cloud cover during the summer.Geology
The Alpine Lakes Wilderness features some of the most rugged topography in theCascade Range
The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...
with craggy peaks and ridges, deep glacial valleys, and granite walls spotted with over 700 mountain lakes. Geological events occurring many years ago created the diverse topography and drastic elevation changes over the Cascade Range leading to the various climate differences.
Big Chiwaukum is composed of schist, part of the Nason terrane laid down 210 million years ago. During the Pleistocene period dating back over two million years ago, glaciation advancing and retreating repeatedly scoured the landscape leaving deposits of rock debris. The last glacial retreat in the Alpine Lakes area began about 14,000 years ago and was north of the Canada–US border by 10,000 years ago. The "U"-shaped cross section of the river valleys are a result of that recent glaciation. Uplift
Uplift may refer to: Science
* Geologic uplift, a geological process
** Tectonic uplift, a geological process
* Stellar uplift, the theoretical prospect of moving a stellar mass
* Uplift mountains
* Llano Uplift
* Nemaha Uplift
Business
* Uplif ...
and faulting in combination with glaciation have been the dominant processes which have created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area.
See also
*List of peaks of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness
The Alpine Lakes Wilderness contains a number of mountain peaks and ranges:
Snoqualmie peaks
* Kaleetan Peak —
* Chair Peak (Washington), Chair Peak —
* Denny Mountain —
* Guye Peak —
* Hibox Mountain —
* Sno ...
References
{{reflistExternal links
Alpine Lakes Wilderness (Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest)
U.S. Forest Service Mountains of Washington (state) Mountains of Chelan County, Washington Cascade Range North American 2000 m summits